About Us

Our Team

Executive & Administration Team

Wolfgang Jamann

Dr. Wolfgang Jamann is the Executive Director at the International Civil Society Centre in Berlin. He has been working in the field of development cooperation and humanitarian assistance for most of his professional life, in the past 15 years in CEO positions at international aid organisations like CARE International, Deutsche Welthungerhilfe and CARE Deutschland. As a strong supporter of inter-organisational collaborations, he has lead strategic partnerships like the ‘Alliance 2015’ or ‘United for Africa’, to promote collective approaches toward large ambitions under the Sustainable Development Goals.

Elke Henning

Elke joined the Centre in March 2019, overseeing the Centre’s administration, finance, HR and IT. Prior to joining the team, Elke worked as Head of Finance and Administration for companies and NGOs in the areas of education and climate economic research and brings 10 years of experience to ICSC. Elke studied Business Administration, Economics and International Politics in Trier, Istanbul and Potsdam.

Mamanding Ndow

Mamanding joined the Centre in April 2019, managing the Centre’s finances. Prior to joining the team, he worked as Finance Analyst for United Nations Development Programme for seven years. He also worked as Finance Manager and Finance Director for three different International NGOs and brings fifteen years of experience to the Centre. Mamanding is an ACCA Accounting Technician and holds a Masters degree in Financial Services Management from University of Salford, Manchester.

Theresa Gasinski

Theresa joined the Centre in January 2018 as the Operations Coordinator. She supports the Deputy Executive Director, oversees a variety of general administrative and HR tasks, troubleshoots technical issues, and communicates with external service providers. Before working at the Centre, she worked for a Berlin-based consultancy firm focused on disruptive technologies. Theresa is originally from the United States, where she worked for three years as an elementary school teacher through “Teach for America,” a nation-wide programme which strives to end educational inequity by training graduates to teach in low-income schools in need of educators. Theresa received her B.A. in Comparative Cultures and Politics from the James Madison College at Michigan State University.

Outi Ruuska

Outi joined the Centre in January 2018. She supports the Executive Director in organisational matters and coordinates the Centre’s governance and legal processes. Her background is in Social Sciences and Environmental Policy. She holds a BA in Social Sciences awarded by the University of Lapland from her native Finland and an MA in Environmental Policy and Planning from the Technische Universität, Berlin. In her master’s thesis, Outi studied the framing of urban climate change adaptation to heat stress in Europe.

Fundraising & Communications

Kathrin Kirste

Kathrin joined the Centre as Project Officer in January 2017. Before, she worked with the Hanns-Seidel Foundation in Tanzania where she was responsible for research, communication, project evaluation and the launch of a civic education project. Previously, she completed an internship with the Green Party at German Parliament. Kathrin also is a freelance journalist and worked for political talk-shows on RBB, RTL, ZDF and an African radio show broadcasted at Deutsche Welle. Kathrin holds a M.Sc. in International Relations from the University of Amsterdam with a focus on international political economy, and a BA in Political Science from the Free University Berlin.

Thomas Howie

Thomas joined the Centre in June 2017 as the Communications Coordinator. He is responsible for developing and implementing the Centre’s global communication strategy, as well as the Disrupt & Innovate platform – a place for civil society professionals and activists to discuss current innovations and future trends in the civil society sector. Prior to the Centre, Thomas worked for 5 years in the European Parliament firstly as the Digital and Social Media Coordinator for the Socialists and Democrats Group in the European Parliament, and then, after the 2014 European elections, for Jude Kirton-Darling and Paul Brannen as Head of Communications, where he worked on issues such as the EU-US trade deal, issues around Brexit and as a specialist on the Petitions Committee. Thomas graduated from Bristol University with BSci in Geographical Sciences and holds an MA in Peace Studies from the University of Bradford, where he completed research into the role of civil society in the post war peace settlement in northern Uganda.

Katherine Temple

Programme Team

Åsa Månsson

Between 2010 and 2013, Åsa acted as manager of the INGO Accountability Charter (Accountable Now). In September 2013, Åsa took up the role as Director of Development, innovating the Centre’s fundraising and communication efforts. Since October 2016, Åsa has been Director of the Global Standard and has additionally taken on the role as the Centre’s Programme Director in mid-2017. Originally from Sweden, Åsa earlier worked for a consultancy, evaluating social projects within the public and civil society sector. Åsa studied European Studies and Sociology at universities in Gothenburg and Berlin. She completed her education with a Master’s thesis on the role of civil society in European governance.

Peter Koblowsky

Peter joined the Centre in January 2013, back then as a trainee. He completed the traineeship in the advocacy & campaigning office of World Vision Germany. Peter now coordinates the Leave No One Behind project as global partnership lead and contributes to the development of various other strategic formats. Before joining the Centre, Peter worked for various organisations and think tanks in the development sector, being an expert in multi-stakeholder processes. He studied at the University of Bonn and graduated with an MA in Political Science with a focus on multi-actor advocacy for climate policy.

Miriam Niehaus

Miriam joined the Centre in 2014 as an Executive Assistant. In 2016 she took on her role as Manager of the Securing Civic Rights projects, namely the Civic Charter and the International Civic Forum. Prior to joining the Centre Miriam worked for VSO International and GIZ in the Palestinian Territories. She holds a BA in Islamic Studies and Social Anthropology from the University of Freiburg and an MA in Near and Middle Eastern Studies from the School of Oriental and African Studies.

Ryan Stanton

Ryan joined the Centre in July 2018 as Events Officer and supports organisation and delivery of the Centre’s events programme. Prior to joining the Centre, Ryan worked for the youth democracy charity “Bite the Ballot” coordinating a European wide competition aimed at increasing youth engagement and turnout in the 2014 European elections, the project culminated in an event at the European Parliament and was named national winner of European Charlemagne Youth Prize for the United Kingdom. He then took a position as Events Coordinator at Oldham Council where he developed his expertise in event management and was the lead officer responsible for managing a wide range of events on behalf of the authority. Ryan holds a degree in International Relations from the University of Leeds and spent a year studying at Tischner European University in Kraków through participation in the Erasmus programme.

Alyssa Cancian

Alyssa joined the Centre in February 2019 as a Programme Intern for the Securing Civic Rights team. She supports the Project Manager in designing and implementing Civic Charter community projects and events. Prior to working at the Centre, she was completing her B.A. in Political Science and French Language & Literature at the University of Alberta and spent a semester studying at the National University of Singapore. Alyssa is originally from Alberta, Canada.

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